On 16 October 2025, the European Commission officially presented the Pact for the Mediterranean, arriving at a critical juncture for the future of the Mediterranean region. The Pact is part of the EU’s effort to renew and strengthen its engagement with Southern Mediterranean partners. This follows the establishment of a new Directorate General for Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf led by Commissioner Dubravka Šuica, the first-ever appointed Commissioner for the region.
The Pact also reflects broader structural changes. As Europe seeks to decarbonise and boost its economic competitiveness through the Clean Industrial Deal, it is recalibrating its external action, both through investments, with the Global Gateway expected to play a more important role in the Mediterranean, and a new Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) currently under negotiation. Against this backdrop, the Pact presents a vision for unlocking the potential of Mediterranean partnerships and explicitly calls for “co-ownership, co-creation, and joint responsibility”.
This policy brief, prepared by the Mediterranean Alliance of Think Tanks on Climate Change (MATTCCh), on the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the Barcelona Process, reviews the Pact’s potential and its areas for improvement, with a particular focus on supporting a sustainable and resilient Mediterranean transition, as implementation moves forward.
